Slight Breakthrough, need to share with bird like lovers.

[momo]

Hi All, as some of you know, I have elmo who i am slowly trying to tame which is a bit hard because he is my first bird.

Anyways, I just had to share this tiny breakthrough with someone, as my family and boyfriend think I am a weirdo that I think this is fantastic and am excited about it.

Normally in the afternoons I will do the dishes and I will take elmo with me. I have been doing that for the past couple of days. This afternoon I didnt have to do the dishes as my mother did them last night and I had to go to my language class.

So my mum was home with Elmo, and she said he was being really cranky all afternoon and she would go up to him and ask him why he's being noisy and he would be angry at her, so she would mimic him, and he would the mimic her. (bad I know..but funny in person.)

Anyways so she decided to try to get him to step up and so he did for her with out protest *first time*.. so she walked around the house and did a few chores with elmo on her shoulder, no protest or loud lovie... (only when she tried to ask for a kiss and he went angry at her, this seems to be something that only happens with me, on cue about 70% of the time.)

But yay... I hope this means that he is slowly enjoying human contact in small doses! I am so excited today, that means he must enjoy our dishes time together!:rofl:

[wilkiecoco]

It's a great start!!! :clap Once they discover that us humans are okay, and not to be feared, the bonding can begin! Keep up the good work!! :)

[momo]

He gets in really awkward positions in his play gym when he tries to eat the peg, or tries to short cut his way to his food bowl, I try to help him but he prefers to flutter and jump off. but today I was able to be the step to help him get back on his branch. I am so happy!!!..

Sometimes I think he thinks he's invincible.. lol

[wilkiecoco]

before you know it, elmo will discover the cardinal mantra of being a lovie - humans are useful as slaves!! :(:rofl:

kiwi will throw things off the table, look at me, wait for me to pick it up, chirping loudly until i do, just to throw it off again. and again, and again.......

and i wouldn't have it any other way!! :happy::blush:

[momo]

haha sounds like you are a well trained human. and will kiwi look at you with a slightly tilted head until you pick it up. hahahaha. oh.. sometimes I think lovies are smarter than us.

when I put veggies in elmos food bowl, he picks them up and drops them over the side.. really is like a two year old.

[Bubblelady]

[QUOTE=momo;118225]sounds like you are a well trained human. sometimes I think lovies are smarter than us. QUOTE]

Don't remember if I've already posted this here. If I have, sorry. Don't mean to be egotistical. It just seems to be appropriate to the discussion :)

I've a lovebird on my shoulder
Snuggled up against my neck.
I know if I disturb her
I'm going to get a peck.

She thinks if she is napping
I should be napping, too;
She thinks she knows exactly
What I should and should not do.

She thinks that I should hold her food;
She hates to dine alone.
And I should open up her cage
The instant I come home.

She thinks that I should pet her
On her neck and on her face
Her beak is there to guide me
Should I scratch in the wrong place.

She thinks all drawers belong to her.
She builds her nests in there.
There are no eggs or boy birds
But she doesn't seem to care. .

She thinks the T.P. tube's a toy
In which to hide, and wait.
Until I tempt her with a stick
To AMBUSH ATTACK the bait!

This is just a partial list
But I think you get the picture.
It's amazing how a tiny bird
Is such a strong willed creature!

She doesn't have a clicker
But it's clear that she can train.
In fact I think that I'm the one
With the proverbial "bird brain"!

Written with Buddy in mind, but I think it applies to almost every lovie ever born!

[LauraO]

I think the biggest breakthrough is getting your mom on board. Having mom become another of Elmo's slaves can only be a good thing:whistle:.

Honestly, it sounds like this is a great step for everyone and everybirdy. Lovebirdies are very social creatures and love to be involved in whatever they can. I say his willingness to hang out with your mom is a product of your hard and dedicated work with Elmo. It's made him more trusting and shown your family how important his happiness is to you.

I really have always cherished the small steps I've taken with birds who aren't so trusting or tame. So I totally understand your excitement!:)

[BarbieH]

Yeah, you've had two breakthroughs this time. :lol Bravo!!

[momo]

Bubblelady your poem is SOO true.. every person who has a lovie would COMPLETELY understand that poem! Especially the sleeping part. If I have a nap through the afternoon, he will have one too, but he goes to sleep later than I do and wakes up earlier.

Sometimes though it's kind of.. strange because he seems to wake me up before I need to do things, or before the phone rings or something like that. It's kind of eerie. This afternoon he woke me up and about 3 minutes later someone was at the door!!

Im glad I know I can share the slavery with my mum. For such a little birdy who is still a little baby (in my mind), he has all of us so well trained. He's a smart lad.

I like to sleep in but ever since Elmo has come into the house, I seem to have an internal clock at 9 to 9:30am I will uncover elmo, open his door and he comes out on his own merit to eat or do what ever he wants and I will either go back to sleep or begin my day. Yesterday, I didnt wake up at 9. Elmo let me sleep in til 10am until he said enough is enough i want to play with my toys. Initially I thought it was only stilll about 7am.. and ignored it only for five minutes... but it got louder and louder. I looked at the clock and saw it was 10... woops! sorry elmie!

I wish I could train him like he has trained me!!

--
Oh I need to share a story on the trust thing you said LauraO.

I put a little bit of millet inside it because I had to clean out all of the poop from it. He watched my EVERY move when touching the happy hut. I had to be careful with my hands because initially he wasn't happy with me moving it out.

Anyways, I put a little bit of millet to entice him back in and show him how clean it is. He looked so cute so I decided to give him a little blob more. Anyways, as I moved closer holding the millet between my fingers showing him. He then, decided it was a good idea to attack and lunged at my fingers, he forgot that the cage bars were dividing the both of us!. Oh, that must have hurt.

I slipped the little piece of millet in and he proceeded to eat it. I wanted to test again (half an hour later) to see if he had learnt from his lessons, this time, he just sat there looking at my fingers, waiting for the millet. No lunging, no warning calls. Ahh.. it was a hard way to learn that lesson..

[Bubblelady]

Aha! Elmo gave you a clue toward training him--it's lots easier to teach a lovie something if the birdie sees it's to his advantage. "I won't pay attention just to please you. But, if there's something in it for me, that's a different story!" Hang in there. I think hard won bonding is more precious, more of a compliment, than having a birdie that just says, "Hey, anybody will do." When Elmo decides to love you, you'll know he really loves you!

[thebubbleking]

"I think hard won bonding is more precious, more of a compliment, than having a birdie that just says, "Hey, anybody will do." When Elmo decides to love you, you'll know he really loves you! "

From experiance i know this to be true, yeh i love all my birds and all thier attention but when my stand offish hen boo decides SHE is in the mood for a visit or i have somehow ERNED a kiss without the lip bite it's all the more special!

[Pips mom]

Congrats on your growing relationship with your lovie! I know what it's like as well, but only with my tiels did I go through these stages of earning trust.......with Pip, he has always just been Pip.....always the same from day one! The only time I feel complimented by him that he likes my company is when he comes over to me instead of going to the other birds! He doesn't do it that often, maybe a couple of times in a week, but it's like his way of telling me that even though he loves the other birds more because they don't have hands :rofl: that he still loves me too! Mostly he's the independent type, but that's ok! Pip has just always let his curiousity and love of freedom take over....without even hestitating to worry about being scared about anything......nope, having fun is his first thought!
Even though he is not one of those cuddly birds who likes to be handled, I still feel a close bond with him, and I love his personality just the way it is! a bold little lovie.....just the way it should be! :rofl:

[momo]

sometimes elmo will do anything for millet, other times he wont do anything for it. but when he wants it.. he wants it!! it doesnt matter whos holding it, whats going on, the earth could be falling around but if hes in a millet mood.. he's in a millet mood!

i felt like my biggest accomplishment is having him sit on my shoulder and not looking to jump away.

one day I would love for hands to be ok with him, but if everything just halts the way it is. I wont be complaining at all.

yesterday morning before I went to work I sat on the opposite side of what elmo was on his play pen and he came over to me and just looked at me for a few minutes while I was talking to him and then proceeded to pay with his toys. lol!

[thebubbleking]

The thing to remember about lovebirds is they will do things when THEY want to and act a certain way when THEY want to and play with you and talk with you when THEY want to! lol

[momo]

hahaha.. i have learnt that the hard way...
if hes on my shoulder and he bites my lip I know he isnt into human time.. but when he nibbles at my lip or rubs his beak against my cheek i know hes up for human time. haha. this morning we had a good human time, until there was a bird near the window and he got all defensive.. no more beak/cheek rubbing.